A Bloodedge's Awakening
by Kinaki747
Summary: A lost hero finds himself awakening in a new world after sacrificing himself for the world. Bereft of his memories, this young man will soon leave his mark on the world. For better or worse, the Wheel of Fate turns evermore.
1. Chapter 1

**I am still a novice when it comes to writing fanfiction. Honestly, I am a little nervous because this is my first serious attempt to write a story. Hopefully, the more I write the more confident and better I will be when writing a story. The ones that came before this one were all spur-of-the-moment and I have hit a wall of sorts. Writer's block and loss of motivation have contributed to the hiatus the other stories are currently on. Hope to change all that with the upcoming prologues. Wish you all a peaceful, non-stressful day or night depending on when you read this. Also, I do not own any of the recognizable characters except for the OC's. This story is for fun and to help me improve on my writing skills. Enjoy. n_n**

* * *

**_Prologue: An amnesiac wakes in a new world_**

_Where am I? Who am I? What am I? _He could not remember the circumstances that led to him ending up in this endless void. Trying to recall anything only brought pain. The only thing he could be certain about was his name, his identity. Like a lifeline, he clung to his name and used it to affirm his existence. In all honesty, that was the only thing keeping him balanced. Even if he was stuck in this "boundary" for the rest of his life, he would not give up his identity. His indomitable spirit and undying will refused to admit defeat.

Decades passed since he found himself in this desolate place and yet he never lost himself. Day in and day out he drifted across the infinite expanse barely able to move. Today was shaping up to be the same way… At least until a bright light blinded him and he knew no more.

"...chael ...riel stop messing… You're going to wake him up" a voice chided. The young man stirred at the noises and voices coming from his side.

"Aw, we just wanted to see what all the fuss was about" one childish voice explained. "Yeah! It's not everyday you find a hobo passed out in the dumpster outside a church" another young-sounding voice added.

"That still doesn't give you two any right to sneak in here to gawk at an injured person. He is still recovering from whatever put him in that state and he needs all the rest he can get. For now just let him rest. You two can talk to him when he recovers," the first voice responded. "Now get going, dinner is almost ready."

"Yes, Miss Serena." The sound of sighing was heard as the two young voices gradually grew distant until they could no longer be heard.

"Sometimes those two are a real handful." Unbeknownst to Serena, the aforementioned hobo was beginning to come to due to the earlier argument.

"Sure, Michael and Gabriel are sweet kids who still have that childish innocence and optimism, which is so hard to find in Gotham nowadays, but their enthusiasm for the outside world and adventurous nature can really make a person worry for their well-being. I honestly don't know how much more my heart can take. Really wonder if they will be alright when they get older…" she mused while making sure nothing was out of place.

"Uhhh… Why does it feel like my entire body was put through a grinder, trampled by a stampede, and roasted by hellfire," a voice rasped out from the bed.

Caught by surprise, Serena let out a yelp before turning to face the bed. The occupant let out a pained grunt before trying to sit up. Clad in a traditional Japanese style sleeveless red turtleneck top, long black gloves reaching his elbows, and baggy black pants, the young man appeared very striking with his blond hair and green left eye. Blinking out of her stupor, Serena automatically replied to his comment.

"That… sounds like an oddly specific response. Any reason for that?"

"Who the hell are you and where am I?" the hobo questioned the brunette confusedly.

"Quite the mouth you have, don't you? As for your question: My name is Serena, and you Mr. Hobo are at a church located in Gotham City." "Gotham… City?" "Yeah, major city located in Connecticut, birthplace of Wayne Enterprises, home of the Batman and some of the world's most insane criminals and psychopaths."

"Wow… Just… Wow. I honestly don't know how to respond to that."

"It's fine. The city is still standing, Batman and Robin are doing their best to protect this city and her people, and there hasn't been much chaos in the past few weeks. Anyway, we are getting off track; Are you feeling better?"

"I'm feeling a hell of a lot better than earlier if that's what you're asking. Why?"

"Considering the state we found you in a month ago, as well as the fact you still have yet to open your right eye or move your right arm, I feel warranted to ask about your health."

An attempt to open his eye proved fruitless. Same for his arm. "Well this is a pain in the ass."

Serena raised an eyebrow at his tired acceptance. "You are taking this surprisingly well. Most people would be in hysterics and panicking if they woke up from a coma to find one of their limbs not responding."

The hobo let out an amused grunt. "I'm not sure if you've noticed, but i'm not like most people."

"Clearly, the amount and severity of your injuries would have killed a person ten times over. Which begs the question: Who… are you?"

* * *

**Reviews would be appreciated. **


	2. Introspection

**Sorry for the delay. A combination of writer's block and life roadblocked the chapter. I am still just a novice writer figuring out my writing style and learning as I go. Reader feedback is really appreciated and helps me grow as a writer. Thanks to Storm Reaper VII and TheViewer-X for inspiring me with their Blazblue: Cross Tag Battle fanfics Blazblue: Cross Tag Isekai and Cross Tag Character Collision respectively, and thanks to Two Halfs One Whole for inspiring me to try my hand at a Young Justice crossover with the story May I Live Once in Peace. Hope you all enjoy and wish you all a pleasant day or night depending on when you read this. Until next time. :)**

* * *

Introspection

Father Joseph was an elderly man. Born nearly seventy years ago, he lived an honest life. A Good Samaritan by nature, Father Joseph dedicated his entire life to helping those whom needed guidance or those in dire straits. So when one of his charges discovered a hobo sprawled out in the dumpster on the verge of bleeding out, Father Joseph did not hesitate to try to help heal the injured man. The hobo in particular appeared to be around nineteen years of age, wore Japanese-style clothing, had red steel-toed, high cuff shoes, and looked to be of English descent. He was littered with multiple contusions, bruises, and gashes.

Frankly, the hobo looked to be on Death's door. His clothes were practically saturated in his blood when they removed them to treat his wounds. He knew there was only a minuscule chance of the hobo surviving given the amount of blood he lost so far, but if they just wrote him off as dead, then he would be dead. Enough people had already been lost to this city for Father Joseph to just accept it as the status quo.

The crime, corruption, dead bodies popping up every other day — he was sick and tired of feeling powerless to stop any of it. He was no fool, no matter how many people he helped, there would still be dead bodies littering the streets and alleyways of Gotham. Batman and Robin proved to be a godsend for the decaying city, but in the end two people can't be everywhere at once.

Honestly, even after decades of living in Gotham, Father Joseph still had trouble sleeping at night due to past incidents and their aftermaths. Shaking his head back to the present, Father Joseph and the volunteers on hand began the long process of preventing their patient from dying on them.

* * *

Throughout the night and early morning, the group treated Mr. Hobo's injuries to the best of their abilities. By the time afternoon started to roll around most of Mr. Hobo's more severe injuries were treated bringing him out of the danger zone. Several times Mr. Hobo looked like he might die on them, and several times they barely managed to bring him back from the brink. At one point he even stopped breathing for a solid minute and a half before they managed to restart his heart. The room was littered in blood, thread, and tons of used gauze. Serena and a couple other volunteers moved the patient to another cell to rest and recuperate from surgery. Another volunteer, Luke, headed to the laundry room to clean Mr. Hobo's blood-stained clothes. It would not be until a month later their mysterious hobo would awaken from his coma.

* * *

Going over taxes and filing paperwork ceased being tedious a long time ago. Nowadays it was just a part of his normal routine. He neither hated or liked it, Father Joseph just accepted it as a normal part of his day - the same as breathing. Just as he finished another pile, someone started knocking on the door to his office.

"Come in. It's open," answered Father Joseph. The door opened in response and two people entered, Serena and the mysterious hobo. "Ah, you're finally awake. How are you feeling?" Father Joseph smiled.

"Feeling a lot better than I did when you first found me apparently. The name's Ragna by the way. It's nice to meet you old man," Ragna replied.

"Ragna! This is Father Joseph. He literally built this church from the ground up and has given many people food, education, and shelter. Without people like him, this city would be a lot more bleaker and depressing than it already is. You can't just call him an old man. It's just rude," Serena admonished.

"But, isn't he an actual old man? You said he was born around seventy years ago, so he is definitely an old man," Ragna countered seeing nothing wrong with calling Father Joseph an old man.

"Still, haven't you ever heard of treating your elders with respect?" Serena protested.

"I may have amnesia, but one thing I do know is that respect is earned, not given," Ragna stated.

"And saving your life from bleeding out, giving you a place to rest, and patching you up isn't enough for him to earn your respect?" Serena said incredulously.

"Look, contrary to belief, I _am_ thankful for all that you people have done for me, but the truth of the matter is that aside from the few things you've told me - I don't know anything about you guys. You even said so yourself, Gotham City is a dangerous place to live in. For all I know, under all those smiles is a sociopathic killer and his fanatic cult playing the long game. Rescuing a person from the brink of death or ingratiating yourselves with the everyday citizens so you have public opinion on your side if your dark secrets are ever revealed," Ragna pointed out.

Serena just looked at Ragna with wide eyes from the absolute audacity he showcased in saying that about Father Joseph and the church. Her fist tightened and before anyone knew it she decked Ragna in the face, knocking him to the ground. Absolute fury gleamed in her turquoise eyes, and with a low restrained voice Serena bit out a reply. "I don't care what you have to say about me, but if you _ever_ disrespect Father Joseph, this church, or the people who live and work here again… **I. Will. Pulverize. You.**"

Ragna could have sworn the temperature dropped ten degrees when she delivered her statement. A cough brought both of their attentions back to their elder, who didn't seem to be affronted by Ragna's words. Instead, his eyes seemed to show understanding and slight sadness.

"Now, now Serena you should not resort to anger and violence so easily. It should not be the first option one goes to when interacting with other people whom have different views in regards to a topic. There will always be others who disagree with you. Everyone is defined by their experiences in life. One person may have grown up in a war-torn land and known nothing but death and bloodshed. Another raised in a time of peace in the care of a loving family. A third, an orphan who had everything and lost everything, but resolves themselves to grow stronger so they never have to experience that pain every again. And the last, one who has been ostracized, ridiculed, and ignored for most of their lives simply because of something out of their control. Every living being in the world grows up differently due to different circumstances and influences. These circumstances and influences can define the kind of being one grows into. If all everybody does is fight one another without knowing their opposition, then how can they ever upstand why they do what they do? Don't let your rage drive your actions else you end up doing something you will regret for the rest of your life. It won't be worth it if you end up with regret. As for you," Father Joseph turned to address Ragna, "there is probably one reason or another why you think the way you do and I won't ask about it for now, but I do hope that in time you come to see the people of this church only want to help their fellow man and try to help make the world a better place one step at a time. If you choose to stay here, I implore you to interact with the people in this church. See for yourself that these people are honest in their actions and words. That there is no hidden malice behind false smiles. At least give us a chance to show you we mean you no harm."

* * *

Throughout Father Joseph's speech, Serena gradually started to cool off from her outburst, settling for just subtly glaring at Ragna from the corner of her eyes. Meanwhile, Ragna picked himself off the floor and listened to Father Joseph's speech and suggestion. Afterwards, he silently contemplated on his course of action and his plans for the future.

On one hand, Father Joseph was offering him a place to stay, complete with food and a place to safely recuperate at the end of the day. In exchange, all he had to do was help out around the church, mingle with the other occupants of this place, and see for himself if the people of this church really were benevolent or if it was all a masquerade. On the other hand, he could leave this place, strike out on his own for the time being, inevitably piss someone off (intentional or otherwise), get in a heap of trouble, and sleep with one eye open from then on for any sign of the police, hardened criminals, Batman, or all of the above. For Ragna there was only one choice.

"Father Joseph, you've got yourself a deal."

* * *

A week into his stay here and Ragna was still getting accustomed to how things were here. This place clearly was not an everyday church. It seemed to combine aspects of a church, boarding school, and soup kitchen. He learned the church (if it could still be called that) housed the homeless and orphaned in the North Wing of the second floor of the building, a library on the ground floor with an entrance to a courtyard, soup kitchen also on the ground floor, laundry room below the ground floor followed by a padlocked door down the hall from said laundry room, and of course the nave on the ground floor. Throughout the week Serena acted civil enough, but it was apparent she was still bitter about Ragna's accusations.

* * *

"Ragna is an ungrateful, rude, asshole. I mean _seriously_, what kind of person accuses the people who saved them from bleeding out of being some sort of cult! I mean seriously!?" she ranted to one of her co-workers.

"Ok I understand why you are pissed at Ragna for dissing the church, but it's also understandable and explainable for Ragna's actions," Luke tried placating Serena.

"Really," she drawled irritably. "Mind sharing with the class?"

"First off, Ragna is found with amnesia and life-threatening injuries inside a dumpster in one of the most crime-laden cities in the entire country. When he comes to he finds that his wounds have been treated and healed — in the process, discovers his right eye and arm are not able to move," Luke paused to eat some fruit. "Afterwards a complete stranger greets him, tells him he is in a church in, again, one of the most crime-laden cities in the entire country, and escorts him to the apparent caretaker of said church. Honestly, can you blame the guy. A part of him probably thinks we crippled him even if we treated his other wounds. Or suspects an ulterior motive for nursing him back to full health."

"Bullshit! What kind of person would you have to be to act like that!" Serena exclaimed angrily. "That is Batman-level paranoia, and he is no Batman."

"No, he isn't. What he is, is someone who had everything he could have ever wanted, and lost it all right before his eyes." Luke solemnly stated.

* * *

Serena stared at Luke following his statement.

"What would cause you to come to that conclusion?" she asked noticing Luke's change in demeanor. Luke's the kind of person who was normally upbeat, friendly, and somewhat laidback. You rarely see the guy frowning or taking things seriously. Which is why it was always a bit disconcerting whenever he acted unlike his usual self. Over the years, Serena learned that while Luke may appear laidback and jovial, underneath that is an observant and secretive person. He never really spoke about his background and most people never really bothered asking him about it. If they did, he usually gave vague answers or deflected the topic away from him. All that aside, Serena was genuinely curious on why he thought that about their newest amnesiac resident.

"It's all in the eyes. People say the eyes are windows into the soul, and they would be right. The brain may fail to remember sometimes, but the soul will never forget what has happened. Might be presumptuous of me to say, but I think something must've happened to Ragna that traumatized him on a fundamental level and causes him to distance himself from others. Something traumatizing on that level will never go away even with amnesia. Some part of him will always carry that until the day he dies. Or he could just naturally be a very grouchy person with a sailor's mouth and snazzy taste in attire. Honestly, if he didn't have amnesia, the best way would be to straight up ask him or someone who knows him about his life. Nobody ever learned anything by doing nothing," Luke explained.

"That still doesn't give him any right to disparage Father Joseph or this church," groused Serena.

"You may be biased towards this place. Haven't you lived here for most of if not your entire life? Father Joseph practically raised you since you were found on the front steps as a baby. He is your father in all but blood. This church is practically your home, which is a bit curious considering you now live in an apartment. Or alternatively, the apartment is like your second home away from home," he pointed out. Whenever someone sullies this place, you always go up in arms or look like you're about to blow your top. Sooner or later that hot-headedness of yours will come back to bite you."

"Which is why I have you. You're a cool-headed person, understanding, not easily offended, easy to talk to, and like an unofficial therapist here. Not to mention you're my best friend," she gave a heartfelt smile.

* * *

Unbeknownst to the two, they had an unintended audience to their discussion. Ragna leaned against a wall just out of sight of the two sporting an unreadable expression. He had just been taking in the sights and familiarizing himself with his surroundings when he came across them. Quickly hiding from their sight he listened in on them. Throughout the whole discussion his expressions ranged from indifference to Serena's opinion of him, to silent agreement with Luke's assessment, and finally a feeling of saudade when finding about Serena's past - like he could relate to being raised by a loving and caring person who worked at a church. Part of the reason he stayed at the church was the sense of nostalgia and security the church evoked in him. Father Joseph's love and care towards his wards and congregation brought about a sense of longing in Ragna, and it genuinely made him happy that these people had a place to belong in this god-forsaken city. During his week here, Ragna did research on Gotham City. What he found sickened him to his core. To say this city was steeped in corruption and crime would be an understatement. Honestly, Ragna wouldn't be surprised if Gotham City was known as the Crime Capital of the United States.

_'I mean seriously, how do people in this city still have the capacity to __trust and open their homes to others?'_ Ragna wondered. Father Joseph and the other workers still managed to surprise him everyday. It didn't matter who you were or where you came from, the people of this church never turned away a person in need. They were the kind of people who were selfless to a fault, and wanted to believe the best in people. Of course even they knew that some people in the world were past the point of no return and would respond accordingly. While strolling around the place, Ragna had noticed the windows were reinforced to withstand most types of gunfire and had intricate patterns on them made from steel, the doors made of oak with crossbars, and the very foundation and structure of the building made with thick granite. In essence, the whole building was a giant fortress built to withstand most types of assaults launched against it. Then there was the whole locked door down in the basement. If Ragna were a betting man, he would place his money on that being where they stored their non-lethal munitions. Then again, this was Gotham City so he honestly shouldn't be surprised at all.

Going back to the present, Ragna ruminated on what he just heard and how he would deal with it. A part of him wanted to open up to them, but another part argued to not get too attached to them and keep his distance to protect them. Although thinking about the church brought up nostalgic and fond feelings, it inevitably also brought along feelings of dread and terror. Whatever caused those sort of feelings to swell up inside of him left a pretty serious impression on his soul and memory. Even amnesia couldn't completely erase whoever or whatever caused these tremors. Eventually deciding to let Luke handle Serena, Ragna left the area to see if there was anyone who needed help with anything. Say what you will about Ragna, but as far as his memory went, he always repaid the kindness shown to him by others. Also, it just didn't sit well with him not to repay the church and her inhabitants back for fixing him up and giving him a place to stay for the time being. Coming up to the kitchen, Ragna spied two certain kids trying to be sneaky going for the jar of cookies.

* * *

Michael and Gabriel commando crawled under tables and chairs, rolled from pillar to pillar, and even hid in the bushes in the courtyard when they heard the sound of footsteps approaching, but it was all about to pay off. The target was in sight with nobody the wiser. Victory truly was sweet. Nothing would be able to stop - "What are you two up too?"

Both kids let out surprised screams and clung to each other while spinning around. Upon doing so they saw the hobo named Ragna staring at them with a bemused expression on his face.

"N-nothing important, Mister. Just playing secret agent," Michael stuttered.

"Yeah. What he said. We were definitely not going to raid the cookie jar before dinner. That wouldn't be proper," Gabriel added.

"Uh-huh," Ragna didn't buy their story for a single second. "Couldn't you just ask one of the adults or Father Joseph if you guys wanted cookies? Seems a lot easier and faster than sneaking off to the kitchen."

"But then they would just say we shouldn't eat too much sugar and try to eat a more balanced diet," Michael protested.

"Besides, we're kids and kids are meant to eat sugar and have lots of fun before they grow up," Gabriel tried reasoning with Ragna on the perspective of a child.

"Come on Ragna, what is one or two cookies compared to the whole jar? Besides, it's not like we are taking them for ourselves, it's for the other kids." "You know you want to. Give in to temptation."

Ragna could only snort in amusement at their attempt at persuading him. Luckily for them, he had a soft spot for children.

"Look, how about you two don't take any of the cookies and i'll see if I can rustle up something that is both nutritious and something all you kids will enjoy. Sound good?"

Both looked as if Christmas had come early.

"Shut the front door. Seriously!?" "ThankyousomuchRagnayou'rethebest!"

Both tackled him with great big hugs. During Ragna's week here, he quickly established his cooking skills on the first day when helping prepare dinner. His culinary talents were top-notch and even Serena had been rendered all but speechless. Since then, Ragna unofficially became the designated chef of the church and everyone looked forward to his cooking.

Light laughing brought the hug-fest to an abrupt end. Turning toward the source revealed Father Joseph standing at the doorway.

"It's always a delight to see you getting along with others, Ragna," Father Joseph smiled. Gently prying off the two jubilant kids clinging to him Ragna addressed the Father.

"Is there something that you need old man?" As the two talked and Michael and Gabriel celebrated Ragna cooking even more delicious food life went on as normal.

* * *

Across from the church in an abandoned alleyway, a pair of eyes filled with hate and malice glared at the church, silently promising retribution before fading into the night.


End file.
